Decoded: Smoke Door Requirements of the 2009 International Building Code (February 2012)
UPDATE: A new version of this article, based on the 2015 IBC, is located here.
Panic Hardware Visibility
If you went to hardware school (like me), then you were taught that egress doors have to be visible and have an obvious method of operation, right? Well, every so often the question comes up regarding visibility of panic hardware, usually because someone wants to match the finish of a Von Duprin Inpact device to the door. Here are a couple of examples from one of my recent museum projects:
WW: Arched Doors
Jeff Tock and Kyle Learch of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies saw these doors right after my post about closers for arched doors, and couldn't believe the methods being used to get these doors closed. The doors had spring hinges as well.
How I Discovered Door Checks (Part 2), by L.C. Norton
I posted Part 1 of this article a while back, and apparently there have been people waiting patiently for the second installment. As requested, here is Part 2. Part 3 to follow.
More Museum Hardware
Last weekend I put together the annual family photo album so I could order copies for the grandparents. Mixed in with all of the vacation photos were a ton of doors. Someday my grown-up kids will be on the psychiatrist's couch..."My mother always took us places just so she could look for interesting doors...I'm scarred for life." :-)
Help Wanted
I really appreciate all of the comments and suggestions that were left in response to my post called WWYD? Cross-Corridor Pair. I love the collaboration and I know we can all benefit from the experience of others as well as the different points of view.
WW: I C-U-P
Remember the old playground joke, "How do you spell 'I cup'?" Somehow it seemed hysterical back in the day, but it's not so funny now...
WWYD? Cross-Corridor Pair
Thanks for your patience, everyone. My week "off" was followed by our Thanksgiving holiday, so I haven't posted as much lately. But I'm back, and I saw lots of doors while I was away.
Miss Me? :-)
As many of you know, I took some time off last week. The plugin I had installed to scroll random posts broke my mobile site so I had to uninstall it. Hopefully you all read that last delayed egress post in depth to keep you occupied. :-)
Decoded: Delayed Egress Hardware – Code Comparison (January 2012)
This post was printed in the January 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
The Great Boston Fire of 1872
It's almost impossible to imagine a fire of this magnitude, which began on November 9th, 1872. More than 770 buildings burned in less than 20 hours, most of them commercial buildings that were previously thought to be fire-proof. Several problems contributed to fighting the fire - the flu that had stricken most of the horses used to pull the fire engines, the attempts to reduce the fire load by exploding kegs of gunpowder inside of buildings, an inadequate water supply, and the crowds of spectators and looters filling the streets.
WW: Cover Girl
I can't stop looking at the naked LCN 4040 behind Lindsey Vonn's head. Thank you to Eagle-Eye Jim Bystry of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies for sending me the link.
Doors of Indiana
I coincidentally received these two sets of photos on the same day. Who knew there was such cool hardware in Indiana??
Reader Photos
It warms my heart when someone says, "I saw this door and I thought of you." :-) That's what Angie Sutton of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies wrote when she sent me this photo of an old vault door on a storage room at the county courthouse:
WW: Cairo Airport
Check out these regular arm closers mounted on the push side of a pair with a transom panel. I would have used a parallel arm closer with a flush transom shoe, but I can appreciate the creativity.
Decoded: Roof Access and Egress
This post was printed in the November 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware
New York Minute
My coworker Don Cherry and I with special guests.
Patient Room Doors
I don't know where this week went. I feel like I blacked out for a few days. On top of my usual load, I had 3 classes to teach within a couple of weeks - Code Jeopardy for the Massachusetts Locksmith Association, Fire Door Inspection for the Yankee Security Conference, and a Code Update for the DHI Conference in NYC. I had a lot of preparation to do because I hadn't taught these exact classes before, and I tend to spend a lot of time preparing so I'm less likely to pass out from fear on the big day. Anyway...this week has been rough but I'm getting there. I'm really looking forward to heading to NYC next Wednesday!
Fire Door Brain Teaser
Paul Goldense of Goldense Building Products showed me this pair of fire-rated doors last week. He mentioned that the architect had to change the arch to make it a "flatter" curve because of the rating, and that they had to use continuous hinges instead of butt hinges. Who can tell me why?
WWYD?: Back-to-Back Doors
Which product application do you use when you have doors that open back-to-back and need to close upon fire alarm? I was just explaining my preferred option to a specwriter last week, and then these photos arrived...perfect timing!
WW: The Greatest Step is Out the Door
I'm getting ready to teach a code class for the Massachusetts Locksmiths Association (anybody want to play Code Jeopardy??) so I don't have a lot of time to post tonight, but thanks to Bob Borson (Life of an Architect), Ginny Powell (A Cracked Door) and Martin Badke (Laux Myth...Thoughts From a Locksmith), I ran across a site mentioned on Twitter that will keep all of you door lovers entertained for most of the day.
Oldies But Goodies
Within one week I received two requests for help regarding old Von Duprin panic devices. I know that somebody out there has a dusty old file cabinet with information on these products. Ideally, we'd like to find exploded parts diagrams, installation instructions, or any other relevant information. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Decoded: Luminous Egress Path Markings
This post was printed in the October 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware
WW: A Hot Mess
This photo was taken by Jim Lenox of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies of Metro-NY. What you can't see in the photo is the pair of vertical rod panics which have had their rods and latches removed.
Closers for Arched Doors
You don't see a whole lot of arched doors on new construction these days, but I think we probably have more than our fair share of beautiful old arched doors in the Northeast. Over the years I've had quite a few calls about how to retrofit new hardware onto existing arched doors, and the trickiest part is the closer. A floor closer would work well, but it's often difficult or impossible to install a floor closer on an existing door because of the required floor preparation.
WW: More Vacation Photos
Here are some more vacation photos submitted by Eyal Bedrik of Entry Systems Ltd. The next time you're on a road trip, don't forget to take some photos for me!
Goin’ Mo-Bile!
Have you ever had a few minutes to spare between meetings or while waiting for someone, and you wondered what was going on over at iDigHardware? Well, now you can find out! If you log into the site from your iPhone, Android, or iPad, you will be automatically directed to the new mobile version of iDigHardware. You can check out recent posts, access some of the more popular areas of the site, or search for the post that will make you a hero when you whip out the information someone is desperately looking for.
“¿Donde estan los churros?”
This weekend I left my computer at home (yes, really!) and headed to Cape Cod for my brother's wedding. The wedding was held in North Truro, and the kids had heard me say several times that we were going to "Truro." Well, my kids go to a bilingual school and are fluent in Spanish. All along they thought we were going to "Churro," and expected to see a slew of the cinnamon-sugary donut-stick type pastries on arrival. The disappointment didn't stop there - we didn't see any sandwiches in Sandwich, and luckily - no obvious pee in P-Town (the common nickname for Provincetown, Massachusetts).
What If?
Have you ever run into one of those doors that needs access control, but for whatever reason it's almost impossible to get the wires to the lock? Maybe it's an existing door (especially if it's fire rated), or an opening set into stone or a fancy surround like the door on the left. It might be a situation where the wiring would have to be run in surface-mounted conduit, or where drilling into the walls or ceiling would create too much dust or would interrupt a busy workspace. In a health care facility, there are specific procedures that must be followed to protect the air quality for patients and staff. An exterior gate or remote door would also be a tough access control installation if the product is hard-wired.
WW: Honky-Tonk Egress
I received a lot of vacation photos this summer, including these from my pal Eyal Bedrik of Entry Systems Ltd in Israel, who apparently spent 5 weeks in the U.S. but didn't stop by to visit me. ;-)
Shiloh Baptist Church Panic, Birmingham Alabama
On this day in history, September 19th, 1902, a stampede at the Shiloh Baptist Church resulted in the deaths of 120 people. The church was clearly over occupant load capacity with thousands packed in to hear Booker T Washington speak, but I wonder about the available exits. Did the occupants rush the entrance door because that was the one they were familiar with? Were other exits marked and operable?
Big 5
Last month I told you that I would be drawing 5 names from my list of connections and subscribers in honor of my 500th post, to win their choice of prizes (an LCN 4040XP closer, a Schlage CO lock, a Schlage residential keypad lock, or a $50 Amazon gift card). Yesterday was my daughter Norah's 5th birthday, and she chose the 5 winners at random.
WW: Blocked Exits
This multitude of blocked exit photos was sent by Ian Childs of New Directions in Building Services, Sydney Australia. I think I may need to go thank Ian in person. :-)
It’s a Dog Eat Dog World, by TJ Gottwalt
I was just thinking to myself how nice it would be to have a night off...actually, since it's already 8:30 p.m. it's more like a half-night. Then I remembered that last week I received an article from a "guest blogger." Woohoo! Thanks TJ!
9/11
I can't believe it has been 10 years already. I've seen a lot of remembrances in the media this week...it's one of those moments in time when we'll never forget where we were, what we were doing, who we were with, how we felt. I was about 6 weeks away from having my first child, and I first saw the television coverage at the midwife's office. They had turned off the TV in the waiting room, but had it on in an inner office...I guess it was best to keep the pack of pregnant ladies calm and deal with our anxiety one-on-one.
Mr. Fix-It
It was a slow day for doors...this is the only door of interest that I saw, and it was the door to Zeke's shed. It's the door equivalent of "the cobbler's children have no shoes." It looks good from the outside, but the inside could qualify for a submission to ThereIFixedIt.com. :-)
WW: No Exit
These are the photos that I referred to in my post about Imperial Foods and the locked/blocked exits there. These photos were taken last week, illustrating that there's still work to be done in awareness of egress requirements. This is a 7-story office building, and one of the two exits was closed off because of construction on the decking outside the door. The photos were sent to me by Peter Jordan of Jordan Consultants.
Water Intrusion
I need some help, and after giving the architect my suggestions I told him that I'd ask all of you for ideas.
Imperial Foods Fire, Hamlet NC
Twenty years ago today, a fast-moving fire at the Imperial Foods chicken processing plant killed 25 and injured 54 of the 90 workers in the plant. Although I think egress conditions and awareness have improved in the last 20 years, there's definitely room for continued improvement. I frequently receive photos of appalling egress and fire door modifications, including some photos that I received this week of an office building exit that was blocked for construction, leaving only one exit for a 7-story office building. I'll post those photos here soon.
Back-2-Basics: Hinge Types and Applications
This afternoon I had an appointment for acupuncture, and as I was drifting off into a needle-induced temporary coma (if you haven't tried it, you should!) I was thinking about what I should post for Friday. Then I thought about how it seemed like such a short time between my Wordless Wednesday post and planning for Friday's post, and in a sudden epiphany I realized that I had posted the WW post today! I DO know what day it is, and I did write the WW post on Wednesday, but I must have had a senior moment. I went back and changed the date so nobody who visits that post in the future will realize that I messed up. To all of the loyal readers out there, THANK YOU for not saying, "You dummy, it's Thirsty Thursday not Wordless Wednesday!" :-)
WW: Doubly-Safe? Or Double-Trouble?
Today's Wordless Wednesday photo was sent in by David Sochaczevski, an architect with the Soltron Group in Montreal. David saw this door near the Stitch ride in Disney's Magic Kingdom. At first glance this application clearly looks like a code problem, but I just couldn't imagine Disney purposely installing hardware that would require two motions to exit. I asked Disney about it but I was told that any information about this door was proprietary. I asked the local fire marshal and received this reply: "Thank you for bringing this safety concern to our department. The configuration in the picture you provided is not as it appears and the door does function according to code requiring only one motion to open the door."
Back to School!
Call me crazy, but this is one of my favorite days of the year - the first day of school. The summer is just too chaotic for me, with kids going every which way to various camps and activities - I need more structure in my life! So needless to say, I'm a happy camper today. I'm even happier because it was announced yesterday that this blog, my 4th baby, won the Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies President's Award in the Leadership category. WOOHOO! Thanks to all of you for visiting regularly and interacting with me. That's what blogging and social media are all about!
Decoded: Stairwell Reentry – Myths & Facts (September 2011)
This post was printed in the September 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware
WWYD? – Police Station
One of my favorite job-related activities is going into a facility and helping with their hardware problems. This week I was called into a police station to look at a door that had allowed several escapes, as well as the main entrance. I thought it would be fun to see what you all would recommend in these situations.
WW: Auction House Egress
These were sent in by Mary Hinton of Mulhaupt's Inc. Can you imagine trying to exit from this "auction house" (junk shop) in an emergency? Their front door lever needs some help too. This might have been the first signal to get back in the car and keep driving!
How I Discovered Door Checks (Part 1), by L.C. Norton
I was recently cleaning out a drawer and found copies of a 3-part article printed in Doors & Hardware in 1986. The articles were written in 1937. I thought I should preserve this piece of our history, so here is the first installment (others to follow).
Reader Photos
Here's the latest batch of photos sent in by blog readers. Thanks everyone!
WW: Ridglea Theater, Fort Worth TX
These photos were sent in by Morriss Johnson of CMA, the architectural firm working on the renovation of the Ridglea Theater. The first two photos are nice, but I LOVE the one of the pair. And YES, it is a required egress door.
Social Media Roundup
Here are some links to recent door-related social media activity. Enjoy!
Open Back Strikes
A couple of weeks ago one of my coworkers, Rich Conroy, took a phone call from someone with questions about open back strikes. Rich asked me to write a post that he could refer people to, and the hold-up was that I had to find a photo. Not the photo you see in a catalog (right), which usually shows the strike alone, but a photo of an open back strike in action. Try looking for one on Google Images and you'll find a few graphics of the strike by itself, some open backed shoes, and plenty of open backed dresses, but no open back strikes in action.